Donald Robertson

Then we have this really weird thing, which is a play by Aristophanes, which is a satire ridiculing Socrates that was written and performed during his lifetime. And we learn almost nothing from that, or it's hard to tell anything from it because it's a caricature, but it tells us that he must have been pretty famous.

Then we have this really weird thing, which is a play by Aristophanes, which is a satire ridiculing Socrates that was written and performed during his lifetime. And we learn almost nothing from that, or it's hard to tell anything from it because it's a caricature, but it tells us that he must have been pretty famous.

during his lifetime for people to have, you know, ridiculed him, caricatured him like that. And then we have what's called the anecdotal tradition, which is like basically a bunch of little anecdotes and quips about Socrates said this, Socrates did that, that we tend to find in later authors.

during his lifetime for people to have, you know, ridiculed him, caricatured him like that. And then we have what's called the anecdotal tradition, which is like basically a bunch of little anecdotes and quips about Socrates said this, Socrates did that, that we tend to find in later authors.

during his lifetime for people to have, you know, ridiculed him, caricatured him like that. And then we have what's called the anecdotal tradition, which is like basically a bunch of little anecdotes and quips about Socrates said this, Socrates did that, that we tend to find in later authors.

So they're a more dubious reliability, but altogether, all this stuff tells us something about what we could frame as the literary character of Socrates. So Marcus Aurelius and other subsequent thinkers that followed the subsequent Socrates would have known of him mainly through these writings.

So they're a more dubious reliability, but altogether, all this stuff tells us something about what we could frame as the literary character of Socrates. So Marcus Aurelius and other subsequent thinkers that followed the subsequent Socrates would have known of him mainly through these writings.

So they're a more dubious reliability, but altogether, all this stuff tells us something about what we could frame as the literary character of Socrates. So Marcus Aurelius and other subsequent thinkers that followed the subsequent Socrates would have known of him mainly through these writings.

So we could say what's influencing them is the character of Socrates that was passed down by other writers. And there's a big question mark about how closely does that correlate to the real guy? We'll never know.

So we could say what's influencing them is the character of Socrates that was passed down by other writers. And there's a big question mark about how closely does that correlate to the real guy? We'll never know.

So we could say what's influencing them is the character of Socrates that was passed down by other writers. And there's a big question mark about how closely does that correlate to the real guy? We'll never know.

Well, the ancient answer to that question is that he wasn't the first philosopher. He wasn't even the first philosopher at Athens. But they used to say that he was the first philosopher that brought philosophy really down to earth and applied it to everyday matters, kind of almost making it into a psychotherapy, basically. He would talk to people about the nature of love.

Well, the ancient answer to that question is that he wasn't the first philosopher. He wasn't even the first philosopher at Athens. But they used to say that he was the first philosopher that brought philosophy really down to earth and applied it to everyday matters, kind of almost making it into a psychotherapy, basically. He would talk to people about the nature of love.

Well, the ancient answer to that question is that he wasn't the first philosopher. He wasn't even the first philosopher at Athens. But they used to say that he was the first philosopher that brought philosophy really down to earth and applied it to everyday matters, kind of almost making it into a psychotherapy, basically. He would talk to people about the nature of love.

He would talk to generals in the military about the nature of courage. He would talk to priests about the nature of piety. He talked to his friends about the anger. The most kind of homely dialogue that we have is in Xenophon. And in it, Socrates has a conversation with his teenage son, Lamprocles, because Lamprocles is really upset about his mum nagging him.

He would talk to generals in the military about the nature of courage. He would talk to priests about the nature of piety. He talked to his friends about the anger. The most kind of homely dialogue that we have is in Xenophon. And in it, Socrates has a conversation with his teenage son, Lamprocles, because Lamprocles is really upset about his mum nagging him.

He would talk to generals in the military about the nature of courage. He would talk to priests about the nature of piety. He talked to his friends about the anger. The most kind of homely dialogue that we have is in Xenophon. And in it, Socrates has a conversation with his teenage son, Lamprocles, because Lamprocles is really upset about his mum nagging him.

And Socrates helps his son to kind of reframe this, overcome his anger towards his mother. So that's probably the most kind of down-to-earth example of a Socratic dialogue that we have. So that's kind of what he was particularly known for doing.

And Socrates helps his son to kind of reframe this, overcome his anger towards his mother. So that's probably the most kind of down-to-earth example of a Socratic dialogue that we have. So that's kind of what he was particularly known for doing.

And Socrates helps his son to kind of reframe this, overcome his anger towards his mother. So that's probably the most kind of down-to-earth example of a Socratic dialogue that we have. So that's kind of what he was particularly known for doing.